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Compared to other free weights, kettlebells seem disproportionately expensive per kg. A quick search turns up only speculation, so an acceptable answer should have a source.

Plausible(?) hypothesis from the internet:

  1. Shipping is expensive
  2. Production happens only overseas (corroborates with 1.)
  3. Low demand -> low supply and higher prices
  4. Different material (are they any different internally than other weights?)
  5. Higher production costs due to shape

Why are kettlebells so expensive?

Hooked
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    I think it's three, but have no good evidence. – Dave Liepmann Jan 04 '13 at 04:12
  • definitely not 5. – Geek Jan 04 '13 at 06:10
  • The trendy factor? – jontyc Jan 04 '13 at 06:38
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    This question is highly speculative… That you demand a source doesn't change this, as you don't specify what you consider an acceptable source. (imho blog posts and or livestrong articles are not better than speculation and I doubt there have been studies done on this matter) – Baarn Jan 04 '13 at 08:10
  • In my opinion it's the "trendy factor" that jontyc mentioned. But I agree 100% with informaficker: this question is very speculative and the subject hasn't been studied rigorously. – HerrKaputt Jan 04 '13 at 10:22
  • I've wondered the same thing myself (they're almost 2x the price of dumbbells!), but there might not be a good source-able answer to this. – DavidR Jan 04 '13 at 15:02
  • @Informaficker I don't think that the question is speculative per se, in fact I can show with links that a comparable kettlebell to barbell is more expensive (in the US at least). Even though I was unable to find any information that showed the subject "hasn't been studied rigorously", it doesn't mean that someone else out there doesn't know. If you do close, just let me know with more detail as I'm new to this particular Stack Exchange. – Hooked Jan 04 '13 at 15:27
  • @Hooked It would be best to ask that on [meta]. I wanted to write a comment but after it nearly broke the boundaries and to avoid prolonged discussion here, simply open a meta question or join the [chat]. The site is still in beta and it is good to have things discussed. – Baarn Jan 04 '13 at 15:35
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    This question is very borderline to being "off-topic" as per the FAQ, as it only qualifies for the "gear and gadgets" category. However, since this is really a question about the price of a piece of gear, and not a question about the gear itself, I'm closing it as off-topic. – Nathan Wheeler Jan 04 '13 at 16:53
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    I would not rule out #5 either. Although casting a Kettle shape is not significantly more difficult than a dumbbell shape, I worked in Quality in the Plastics industry, and shapes like the handle of KettleBells tend to be weak points, requiring more intense QC, and tighter control of the processing parameters (heat,time, pressure) to ensure that the handles do not snap off. – BillN Jan 04 '13 at 16:55
  • @NathanWheeler Meta discussion about this question: http://meta.fitness.stackexchange.com/questions/411/is-it-ok-to-ask-questions-about-the-economics-of-gym-equipment-if-not-where – Hooked Jan 04 '13 at 17:04

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